Housing alone is not the solution. Our Nurturing
Independence & Aspirations (NIA – pronounced knee-ah)
program provides voluntary supportive services to anyone living
in or anyone who has moved on from housing at Independence
Place. NIA case management and supportive services make
successful outcomes possible.

Building on the success of our NIA program, YWCA Greater Cleveland created Independence Place to address the critical need for housing and supportive services of youth transitioning out of failing systems, including foster care. Independence Place currently consists of 23 efficiency apartments. We provide residents with a safe and nurturing place they are proud to call home as they begin the path to becoming independence, self-sufficient adults.

Contact:

Jerome BakerCommunity Engagement Supervisorjbaker@ywcaofcleveland.org

Compared to peers, foster youth are three times less likely to graduate high school and half as likely to complete any college.

Approximately 200 teens age out of foster care annually in Cuyahoga County.

100% of young people living in Independence Place were previously homeless.